THE SCREEN; Bette Davis Plays a Romantic Role in 'Winter Meeting,' Film at the Warner

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Of all the frustrating experiences that Bette Davis has had in films—and, heaven knows, she has had aplenty; indeed, she has had little else—the one she now has in "Winter Meeting," which came to the Warner yesterday, is clearly the most bewildering, not only for her but for us. For in this rather chilling encounter, Miss Davis discovers to her dismay that she's in love with a mopish young fellow who really wants to become a priest. And after she comprehends this passion, which is murkily verified at best, she surrenders her man through a process of dialectic that would addle Plato's brain.No doubt, the people at Warners thought they were doing Miss Davis a good turn by putting her in this situation which would tax the composure of a lady Job. And just to show their anxiety for her emotional complexity, they also made her a neurotic with a New England spinster attitude. Under these circumstances—and knowing Miss Davis' type—it shouldn't be hard for you to picture the possibilities for her displays.But actually the Warners' generosity is Miss Davis' misfortune in this case and her manner of handling the situation is much better than that of the script. Under Bretaigne Windust's direction, she actually catches at times some sense of a woman's deep disturbance at a most puzzling turn in an affair of love. And never, let's say to her credit, does she nibble the scenery as of yore.However, the explanation may be that she's so busy speaking lines—endless lines of completely tedious dialogue—that she has no time for anything else. And a young fellow named James Davis (no relation), who plays her vis-a-vis, is so burdened with throwing them to her that he appears utterly distressed by it all. John Hoyt seems likewise bored and churlish at having to play up to her as a burned-out dude (at which he is eminently graphic) and Janis Paige is dull as a doll. But all of them have so much talking and so little pertinent moving to do—so much jawing of heavy fiddle-faddle—that they are less to be blamed than a bad script. Catherine Turney, who assembled this rhetoric from a novel by Ethel Vance, should be made to sit through "Winter Meeting" about twenty-five or thirty times—which is the number of times you are likely to feel you've sat through it when you've seen it once.

A version of this review appears in print on April 8, 1948 of the National edition with the headline: THE SCREEN; Bette Davis Plays a Romantic Role in 'Winter Meeting,' Film at the Warner. Order Reprints|Today's Paper|Subscribe